


Dahlia Imperialis

by YukimuraRuki



Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: Character Death, Dahlia - Freeform, Language of Flowers, Loss, Love, M/M, SanaYuki - Freeform, Tennis, alpha pair, bell tree dahlia, subtile boys love, tenipuri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-29
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2019-06-18 04:17:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15477495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YukimuraRuki/pseuds/YukimuraRuki
Summary: Five years ago the members of the Rikkai tennis team separated. They advanced to different high schools or moved far away. Sanada often walks up a hill where he often spend time with Yukimura. On this day, he brought a special flower to this place and met Yanagi by chance. They both know that the bell tree dahlia is one of Yukimura's favourite flowers, but Sanada never knew why. With Yanagi's help he finally figures out the secret feelings that Yukimura had for his best friend.English is not my mother tongue but I hope this is an understandable text. If someone would like to correct some of this, I'd appreciate it a lot.





	Dahlia Imperialis

Recently, Sanada Genichirou realized the meaning behind everything that had happened between him and his captain. The reason for never being able to refuse his best friend’s requests and that his every smiles were the biggest trump card played out by Yukimura Seiichi. Nowadays, Sanada could have made his captain smile in a more elegant way. On the other hand, it was likely that this awkward Sanada was the one Yukimura liked most.

Everything happened unexpected at first and terribly fast. Sanada prefered to prepare for impending events, however there were moments in life nobody would ever be able to. No matter how how hard Sanada tried to set his mind for this specific moment. At some point their ways had to separate, because they could not stay youngsters forever. Sanada would have preferred that his best friend had not gone that far away. Why did he not understand himself better earlier. He was probably not mature enough for this kind of relationship or feelings back at the junior high school.

Sanada walked along the well-known path, which he kept on walking from time to time. The way along the traces of his path, where Yukimura Seiichi once had lived with his family and then past the old tennis school, which they had visited as little boys and last past, at their old junior high school. There was a time when the Rikkai junior high school’s Tennis Club had been one of the best clubs in the entire country. Even today, the school had a high reputation, especially the tennis club. Due to the iron hand of Kirihara Akaya, the local tennis team managed to conquer the world of school tennis again. Kirihara continued their tradition of a strict zero-tolerance policy for losses. At least if the rumours spread around in a correct manner. Sanada also heard that Yanagi Renji supported his Kouhai in the role as vice-captain during their fellow high school years. Exactly as expected, the club at Rikkai high school gaines as much a high reputation in the school tennis world as the junior high school did under Yukimura Seiichi's leadership.

While Sanada walked the usual ways, he wanted unburden his heart to Yukimura. However there are things in life that could not be expressed, told, or discussed in letters. Especially not when the other moved as far as Yukimura. No, this matter needed a meeting face to face. After all these years without a phone call nor a single word, was there any point in telling him about his feelings? In the end, they had never gotten over the defeat of their team. Yukimura's pride and motivation was to win undefeated all three years of the national championships. Yukimura left just after their graduation from junior high and in an instant moment, Sanada noticed his own heart for the first time. He had never loved tennis as much as he loved Yukimura Seiichi. When Yukimura left, Sanada put tennis aside as well.

in order to combine his traditional lifestyle and the strict tennis training, Sanada rose from bed at four o’clock every morning already in his childhood. Strangers would find this habit odd and often told him that he must have lost all senses. Even back in their elementary school days, he had often come up to this place for a tennis practice with Yukimura. Here, on a relatively high, green hill on which they also shared their thoughts and worries. From up here, they often observed the the Rikkai high school which had its tennis courts close to this holt. They both shared the dream to continue their tennis carrier at that school in order to make their victory run completely perfect. They also wanted to win the national tournament for high schoolers three years in a row. But fate was not as favourable.

Sanada still loved the view in this place. He enjoyed the wonderful the urban landscape from this point and felt, that the scenery was characteristically for his home country. Contemporary architecture, skyscrapers and highways combined with a green oasis of forests, shrines and small family houses. While watching the city from above here, Sanada was overwhelmed by a nostalgic feeling.  
Shortly after Sanada quit playing tennis, he barely knew what to do with most of his free time. As a compensation, he came here in the mornings and evenings to indulge his memories of spending time with Yukimura and concentrate on his studies. In a few weeks, he would become busier with homework, studying for mocking tests, exams and his student job and hardly have the opportunity to visit this little paradise. Sanada already expected to miss this place and the feeling of neglecting Yukimura would be excruciating. But as time passed, more commitments built up on Sanada’s shoulders, he wished that he could live twice as much, so he could dedicate a little more time to Yukimura. Of course Sanada knew that this was impossible and silly to hope for.

"So you came after all?" A familiar voice asked him from behind his back. No matter how many years passed, time could not shake the tone or intonation of this voice. Sanada was able to recognize his old friend among millions. On the other hand, he could hardly ever tell which feelings actually hid in Yanagi Renji's voice, as he mostly talked in a monotonous way. When Sanada turned around he saw his former classmate. He did not answer him, however, but finished the work he just had begun. Sanada took the little pot which he had carried all the way up the hill out of a white plastic bag and put it under the most beautiful tree. In that pot grew an already quite tall shrub flower, yet not in bloom. Yanagi put his palms together and bowed briefly to the tree before eyeing the plant.  
"It's not time for this flower to bloom yet, Genichirou, you know that don’t you? It must have been expensive." Yanagi said calmly, though there was a faint undertone of surprise in his voice.  
"I don’t really care about the money. Yukimura liked this flower a lot. Besides, there is not much left for me to spend my money on." Sanada bluntly said. Whether Yanagi wanted to make this conversation any deeper Sanada could not certainly tell. However, he noticed that his friend almost studying every detail of this flower with great interest. Sanada had just bought it from the florist this morning during the shop’s first open hour.  
"Dahlias are very beautiful, aren’t they? This one here would be a bell tree dahlia, am I correct?" Yanagi stated soberly. It was hard to believe that Yanagi really found this flower beautiful as his voice did not give any hint of an emotion at all.  
"You know its name? it figures!." Sanada remarked with a tiny smile. It seemed to him that nothing had changed since their fellow days at middle and high school. Yanagi had a little bit of knowledge in any topic or subject.  
"No, no. I just remember that Seiichi liked them a lot. I didn’t know the name of these flowers until Seiichi told me. Since then I read a little about them." Yanagi continued in the same calm manner. Sanada shuddered slightly as Yanagi said their friend's first name this lightheartedly. Seiichi, this name made Sanada’s heart leap. Sanada himself has never called Yukimura by his first name. Whenever he tried, he felt a strange feeling, as if he simply did not deserve to call his captain by his first name. Of course the reason this was partially that Sanada did not want to show how much Yukimura actually meant to him, and that was why Sanada had always preferred to use his last name. Yanagi never experienced it as especially difficult to get along with his class- and teammates, so the name 'Seiichi' was easy to say as well. Sanada on the other hand felt a weird anger boiling inside when he heard others call Yukimura’s name. Sometimes he even felt a burning sensation in all his muscles as soon as the thought of someone could be closer to Yukimura than he was himself. This condition was generally called 'jealousy' and when it came to Yukimura, Sanada had always felt that way. No one should to be that impudent towards the captain of the Rikkai tennis club. Sanada never allowed that. Some things never changed, no matter how much time passed by.  
"Although Seiichi influenced me to read some books on botany. Somehow I've might become a little plant expert, if I'm not compared to botanists." Yanagi said flatly. He was not good at jokes, but Sanada knew him well enough to know that Yanagi did not brag about his intelligence and knowledge. Sanada finally nodded. "It’s funny, but he made me remember flower types and names too. I even know them today, though I was a bit embarrassed when I first memorized them."  
"Still, very attentive of you to bring Seiichi's favourite flowers to him". Yanagi said, with a gossamer smile flicking to his lips for a split second.  
"At least today I should bring the flowers he liked the most. At least once a year... " Sanada explained, adjusting the collar of his shirt a little to cover his embarrassment.  
"Genichirou, do you know why Seiichi liked these flowers so much?" Yanagi inquired further. Sanada shook his head.  
"No. He never mentioned it. I just always remembered the names of the flowers he liked. I never actually asked for any reasons. Flowers are such a mystery to me that it took long enough to remember their names". Sanada laughed at himself. Things that Yukimura found easy to learn were difficult for him and vice versa.  
"Is that so?! Then let me ask you another question: Do you know the other name of this flower?" He wanted to know now. Yanagi insistently looked at his friend, which rarely happened, because Yanagi saw the world through only slightly opened eyes. The haunting brown told Sanada that Yanagi wanted to make him understand something very specific and therefore led their conversation in that direction. Sanada did not understand this urge at all and could not quite see Yanagi’s reasons to inquire this. However Sanada felt terribly cornered because he did not know the answer. Sanada closed her eyes and shook his head slightly instead of answering directly.  
"They are called the emperor."

A knife went through Sanada's chest as if time suddenly stopped. A few years ago, he watched his captain gardening in the school yard.  
"I didn’t expect to see you here, Sanada". Yukimura said with a gentle smile, but no surprise reflected in his eyes. He sat in the flower beds of the school and took care of the green areas which otherwise would been terribly neglected. Sanada laughed a little in embarrassment: "I wanted to talk to you about the upcoming exhibition match, but when I asked in your class, they told me that you are here."  
"Oh! And I thought, that you are at least a little bit interested in these little ones. It would be really nice, you know?" The other replied cheerfully. Snada could only guess what was going on in his captain’s head.  
"You really like plants, Yukimura". Sanada said, breaking the silence, he actually kicked at an open door. Yukimura laughed softly in response. "How come you know about that?"  
"Because your eyes are especially friendly when you look at flowers," he replied shortly.  
"Hmm, I guess you’re right". Yukimura nodded and added. "I love flowers! But I think you've noticed it even more, because I especially like this flower." His slender finger pointed at a plant that looked more like a tiny bush or young tree than than an ordinary flower. Its crown consisted of fine, delicate fuchsia petals, which grew star-shaped on its calyx. Sanada curiously looked at this particular flower: "What is its name? The flower you love most?"  
"They are called bell tree dahlia". Yukimura replied immediately. "They are very different from ordinary dahlias which are usually found at florist shops. They are much simpler, but seem more noble. "  
"Bell tree dahlia, huh? I'll remember it!" Sanada said, although he could hardly follow Yukimura's speech about dahlias. Not because Sanada did not find it interesting, but rather because he had no clue about flowers. Yukimura laughed softly and said more to himself than to his best friend. "Really? I will always love it. Yes. For ever and ever." At that time Sanada did not even suspect a deeper meaning lay hidden behind this sentence.

 

"In the language of flowers, it means a maiden’s pure heart. If you ask me, the purity and sincerity of a maiden is actually far away from the name emperor". Yanagi remarked in his usual monotonous tone. Sanada, on the other hand, recalled the name of another flower: "Lina -... ria."  
"I beg your pardon?"  
"Linaria. Do you know what they mean in the language of flowers?" Sanada asked immediately, whereupon his friend's eyes widened in surprise. It seemed Sanada put him off his stride as he asked this completely absurd question. Finally, Yanagi's expression relaxed again and thought for a moment: "Linaria ... I think ... yes I remember. Linaria means 'Please recognize this love'. Why do you ask?"

 

The heyday of the noble bell tree dahlia was in November. A lot of other beautiful flowers bloomed in their most virbrant colours around Yukimura, to spread some joy into the gloomy late autumn. Sanada noticed a few flowers, which did not have a colourful crown yet.  
"You haven’t brought these to bloom yet. The ones next to the bell tree dahlia."  
"The Linaria? Well, they’re out of their season, that’s why. " Yukimura replied immediately.  
"Do you like them too?" Sanada curiously asked.  
"Well, yes of course, I like them, but I plant them for another reason. I'm still hoping that they’ll grant me a wish". Yukimura said a little dreamily. "That's why I planted them right next to the bell tree dahlia. I want them to influence each other. "  
"Hmm ...", Sanada remarked thoughtfully. He did not understand everything in detail, but he did not dare to ask further questions. Sometimes Yukimura was really complicated.  
"I guess you do not even understand it when I explain it to you," he joked.  
"Well, I guess your philosophy is just very complex ...", Sanada nodded affirmatively, whereupon Yukimura burst into a hearty laugh: "Sanada, honestly ... you're just a little bit out of touch. But that’s soothing. "  
"W-what?!", Sanada pretended to be offended. Yukimura always found that Sanada’s simplicity was absolutely adorable.

 

Scales fell from his eyes. After all these years, he finally understood that every single one of Yuikimura's gestures and actions made sense. There never was any doubt, if he only had tried to understand more. Sanada slowly went down to his knees to the ground. Without knowing he looked much like Yukimura in his innumerable days at the hospital.  
"I see... So that's how it is..." As these words left his mouth, a gust of wind turned over the small pot, whereupon a few of the bell tree dahlia’s green leaves were torn with it and carried away through the air. They whirred aimlessly and uncontrollably about. As the leaves fanned out, the air filled with sobs and mournful laments.  
"Genichiro ..." Yanagi remained cautious and reserved. He had never seen Sanada’s eyes filled with so many tears before. No, Sanada never shed tears. At least not to his teammates. His sobs sounded like a mixture of self-mocking laughter and deep mourning.  
"Yukimura ..." The name of his friend, was the only one that spawned Sanada.  
Sanada had never cried, in fact. He did not even show any sign of grief for Yukimura Yukimura, whose death was a particularly painful loss in his life. As Sanada let his feelings run freely, Yanagi settled down next to him on the ground, rubbing Sanada’s back to comfort him. Neither he nor Sanada cared about their surroundings at this moment. There might be people out there who could have heard the desperate sobs and found the sight of his pathetic, but each of Sanada's comrades would understand and feel sympathy for him. The only person who would never have bared to see Sanada devastated, no longer existed in this world. Finally, Sanada was able to let it go, even if he hated to cry. Crying did not change reality and yet he felt incredibly relieved.

Sanada actually always wished to continue to suffer for all eternity, than to ever feel better. They both could not determine for how long they sat in front of that beautiful tree, but it must have been a few minutes. At some point the tears of the taller man subsided to drip onto his cheeks and he finally managed to stop. In order to bring his emotional outburst to an end, Sanada took Yanagi's hand and rose again with him and his help.  
"Sorry, I let myself go ..."  
"It's okay". Yanagi replied, still worried about his friend. Nevertheless, he also felt relieved, because Sanada had probably never mourned. This momentary outburst surely helped him deal with Yukimura's death even so it would still take a lot of time to accept it.  
"Renji. I don’t know if you believe me, but since Yukimura disappeared, I have not once wished that he lives again". Said Sanada, his voice still filled with tears.  
"Is that so…"  
"Yes, because even if I did, this wish would never come true. The only thing I wanted was... I have always wanted to know how Yukimura felt about me. So many dozens, hundreds and thousands times I've asked myself if Yukimura likes me ... well... At least this puzzle is solved today." Sanada explained.  
"I see...", Yanagi said nothing more. He did not torture Sanada with more questions, because he sensed the others feelings somehow. The feeling that Sanada experienced right now could not be described as joy and yet it felt similar, but more bitter. The missing puzzle pieces finally fell into their respective places and presented a completed picture. The emotions he just released, revealed an unfamiliar feeling of freedom in Sanada's mind and helped him to understand some things better.

It was Sanada's parents who decided that he should start with tennis. They signed up their son at a tennis school. He himself never came up with such an idea, as he wanted to completely concentrate on Kendou and other Japanese arts. Nevertheless, Sanada could not contradict his parents without having started yet. He wanted at least to try it for a while to see if it was an enjoyable sports as well. Sanada had joined the club with that kind of attitude, which he in later years would have demeaned. At this tennis school, he met Yukimura for the first time. He had first thought that Yukimura was a little girl and felt incredibly humiliated, that such a small girl could so easily defeat him in this sport. The shame had less to do with the fact that Yukimura Seiichi supposedly was a girl, but rather with Sanada's immediate interest in this girl to notice him as the strong samurai like boy. Sanada had felt as if he had to protect this yet unknown girl. With this sixth sense, Sanada did not leave his soon-to-be best friend. Without foreseeing it, a deep and honest friendship began. No, they were in fact soulmates.  
By chance, the two enrolled the same school and took over the reign of the local school tennis club. They won the national championships for two years in a row, whereupon a stroke of fate befell the team. Yukimura Seiichi, their captain got seriously ill with a life-threatening autoimmune disease. Sanada trained even harder and unyielding in order to become a better vice-captain for the other members. He wanted to become the country’s best player in all tournaments only for Yukimura Seiichi’s sake. His best friend should not worry about anything else but his own recovery. Sanada’s intention was to give him strength and support for the tough and ongoing fight against the Guillain-Barré syndrome. For that reason, and to push himself beyond his own limits, he made a fatal promise to Yukimura. The promise that sealed his and the entire team's fate. They wanted to wait for their captain undefeated. The team of Rikkai middle school lost first at the final match of the Kantou-region tournament and after Yukimura’s return, they also suffered a severe loss at the final of the national tournament. Despite Yukimura's presence, they could not win. As if fate had become one of their enemies, Yukimura suffered from a merciless rebound and had to be hospitalized again. 

Sanada learned about it together with the other team members, shortly after Yukimura's parents had received the sad message. The moment when the red light of the operating room turned off and the doctor came out to deliver the sad news to both parents and friends, stayed still clearly in his mind. The message about their great loss, which they all feared dawned on them as the doctor told them with an almost emotionless voice. While Yukimura's parents collapsed in a shock and the other members of Rikkai sobbed and lamented noisily, Sanada remained motionless. As if bewitched by a fox god, he silently packed his bag and went home without exchanging a word with anyone. Sanada barely remembered, but at that moment, it seemed all his feelings died down.

The following day, Sanada left the team with the conviction to never again take a racket in his hands. He did not even wait until the end of the trimester to make his withdrawal as officially and formally as possible. It was not only the vice captain who left the team. In the end, only Yanagi and Akaya remained of their original team. Marui retired with the excuse that he had to take care of his younger brothers. Jackal was forced to take on some part-time jobs to pay the school fees at high school and Yagyuu concentrated on achieving good grades in order to be accepted at the Toukyou Daigaku medical school without any problems. Sanada just could not remember Nious' reason. He was not even sure that he had even spoken to Niou again after Yukimura's disappearance.

"I do not think I've regretted anything in my life so much as ... If I could live my life again, I would not change anything. I reluctantly started to play tennis, so I could be close to Yukimura. From the very first second my heard succumbed to him, without me even noticing. I wasn’t able to notice it until I lost him. Because I'm just too oblivious to recognize it. No matter how many times, I would always repeat everything the way everything happened. I would not change anything, as long as I could only... the National Championship...if only I had prevented Yukimura from playing ... He had just recovered ... " Sanada said through gritted teeth. Anger rose in him. Anger at himself and at the injustice of the whole world which had taken Yukimura away from him.  
"I know what you want to say, Genichirou, but you know that Seiichi did not die because he overdid it. The disease is insidious ... " Yanagi tried to make his friend see that he was not responsible for Yukimura’s death.  
"I know! And yet ... I ... "  
"Let me ask you one more question," Yanagi demanded unusually forcefully, which rarely happened. "Do you think any of us, who participated with the intention of losing in the National Championship?"  
"What do you mean by that?" Sanada countered with a counter question.  
"Which was the most important rule for us members of the Rikkai tennis club!? Do you still remember it? Even a sudden, unexpected loss will not be tolerated! Who did hammer this rule into us again and again? Correct, it was you. And we have striven for this ideal too. None of us back then wanted that singles one happened. Or are you convinced of the contrary? ... You didn’t sign up for singles one in order to protect Seiichi! You didn’t want him to play, that’s why you made him play singles one. How many times you want to live your life over and over again is up to you, but don’t think that you’re the only one who suffered. Besides, Sanada Genichirou! Seiichi's death was not only a cruel loss to you! I will not forgive you if that’s what you think. I quarreled with Yagyuu and that quarrel was a really ugly one. Jackal and Marui started a fight and Akaya just could not stand the collapse of our team. Even Niou cried. We ... the Rikkai tennis club, we have lost both our captain Seiichi and our vice captain Genichirou at the same time. You ran away, Genichirou, and we had no place to flee."

Sanada remained silent. He had never experienced his friend like that before. Yanagi had never expressed his feelings this direct and freely, and no one ever dared to tear Sanada off a strip in this way. For how many years held Yanagi this grudger inside himself? At least he had someone in front of him whom he could blame. Sanada onnly cursed fate. But now he realized his own mistakes and that those were not easily forgiven either.  
"What do you think was Akaya feeling during the following tournaments. It wasn’t easy, but he reclaimed victory. Can you imagine how he made it? Because he cherished the thing that Yukimura loved, with all his heart. He did what you could not. He continued to play tennis in order pay tribute to Seiichi. Why can’t you do that?" Yanagi asked rather rhetorically.  
"You're pretty merciless, Renji" Sanada joked with a bitter smile. Yanagi blushed, realizing what he had actually done. He turned around in embarrassment so that he could hide his red face. "Don’t you laugh, Genichirou. Did you at least listen to me? "  
"Yes, excuse my behaviour" Sanada replied with a profound laugh in his voice. Finally, he recognized that he could not help but realize he was on the run. He had fled from the truth and reality for many years now. For the first time Sanada was forced to deal with Yukimura's death. Half of Sanada’s mind had always accepted it, the other half of him just wanted to scream, cry and rage. His teammates had already dealt with these thoughts and the chaos of varying feelings of guilt and sadness, during the summer of five years ago. Sanada would have to go through the same now, but there was nothing he could complain about. He had chosen the easier way and abandoned his own comrades, who needed his decision-making skills. Sanada Genichirou was selfish and had turned his back towards them.

"I'm sorry, Renji. I wholeheartedly regret my decisions. I'd like to sincerely apologize, to everyone if that’s even possible. So if there's anything I can do ..." Sanada said in a subdued voice.  
"Well ...", Yanagi began after a brief moment of hesitation, "There is a court for street tennis over there. How about lending you one of my racquets and we go and play a little? Or a one set match, if you feel like it. "  
A few seconds of silence followed, this silence felt like many hours to them. Sanada nodded at last. "It’s my first match in five years. Don’t be too hard on me."  
Two young men, who already were university students, walked along the quiet scenery of greens and greys. From a distance the struck of tennis balls already resounded from the court. Sanada's heart began to beat faster. He remembered the feeling of playing tennis. The feeling of playing tennis next to Yukimura Seiichi spread throughout his body and made his heart leap. Sanada knew that Yukimura was with him whenever he played tennis. This thought made him smile confidently.

 

"Seiichi. I might be a fool, sometimes I’m hard of understanding or oblivious and absolutely stubborn, which makes me not good at adapting to new circumstances. It will probably take a while until I can continue to go forward. Nevertheless, I’m sure that I soon, in the near future, I will be able to cherish the sports you loved so much. I will love tennis again and appreciate even more than before. I will love it more than ever.

I guess taking a bell tree dahlia probably didn’t make sense from the start. Today in exactly one year, I will bring you a flower that I have chosen for you."

 

The end.


End file.
